To Malcolm X: Happy 83rd Birthday
In honor of what would have been Malcolm X’s 83rd birthday, Villager has compiled a phenomenal list of links to some of his famous speeches and interviews, including “Ballot or the Bullet,” “Who Taught You to Hate Yourself?” and “House Negroes vs. Field Negroes.” He’s also leading a discussion about how this man has touched the lives of so many people through his voice, his fire, and his life.
I encourage you to send your wishes to Malcolm X’s memory and join the discussion if he has affected your life in a profound way.
Happy birthday, Brother; your spirit lives on.
A belated note: Latoya at Racialicious also compiled links and information relating to Malcolm X, in honor of his birthday yesterday. Check them out.
Also, Yuri Kochiyama shares a birthday with Malcolm X, which was rather surprising for me to find out after knowing about their close friendship. She turned 87 yesterday. Thanks to Angry Asian Man for the heads-up. Happy belated, Ms. Kochiyama!
“It is a time for martyrs now, and if I am to be one, it will be for the cause of human brotherhood.”
His spirit, his passion, has shaped my thought and my world. He even gave me my name. My mother left the NOI decades ago, but she never left Malcolm’s cause behind. And neither have I.
El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz will forever shine within our hearts and minds. His words and vision continues to ring true today:
I am not a racist. I am against every form of racism and segregation, every form of discrimination. I believe in human beings, and that all human beings should be respected as such, regardless of their color.
SjP
Thanks for the reminder.
[...] blogs: In honor of what would have been Malcolm X’s 83rd birthday, Villager has compiled a phenomenal [...]
Awesome interviews, his analysis was just so good. He never let criticism of whites stay merely “personal”–but always drew the connections to systemic oppression; economics and the government (and *WHO* directly profits from these divisions): “Don’t blame some poor Georgia cracker for all of this!”
I can’t think of anyone else who did this so doggedly in virtually every speech/interview he gave.
The fact that whites got all prissy over his use of words like “cracker” and his “tone” –means they missed the overall message and how he was really letting so many of them/us off the hook!
Back in the day, Malcolm was regarded as being like Louis Farrakhan. Whites hated his guts; my aunt seemed to think he was the devil incarnate while not knowing anything about him. A sign of being a serious white radical was to actually READ Malcolm and carry his book around ostentatiously, which I dutifully did. I finally opened it and READ IT (which I admit I had been scared to do) and was startled at how forgiving he really was! I was like, hey, have you guys actually READ THIS STUFF???
Thanks much.
He was a master of his message, wasn’t he? He always spoke with clarity. I suppose for some people, the truth will always be frightening. Thanks for commenting, Daisy.
Hey there love,
Just stopping in cuz it’s been too long and soaking you in…
XO
-S